Editing Tips #3

Hello there! Welcome to the third installment of my editing tips series!

Today we're going to be talking about dialogue and paragraphs!! Fun, fun!

Since I totally didn't forget to post one last week. Shhh.

Dialogue is an important part of writing. Without it, the story would seem dull and anticlimactic. It fleshes out the characters while providing a break from straight exposition. It takes time to develop a good ear but noting these simple rules and obvious pitfalls can make a huge difference.

Listen to how people talk:

Having a sense of natural speech patterns is essential to good dialogue.

•Start to pay attention to the expressions that people use and the music of everyday conversation.

•This exercise asks you to do this more formally but, generally speaking, it's helpful to develop your ear by paying attention to the way people talk.

•And : eavesdropping is not a crime!

It's not exactly like real speech:

But dialogue should read like real speech. How do you accomplish that?

•Alfred Hitchcock said that a good story was "life, with the dull parts taken out."

•This very much applies to dialogue.

•A transcription of a conversation would be completely boring to read.

•Edit out the filler words and unessential dialogue — that is, the dialogue that doesn't contribute to the plot in some way.

•Take out the tangents, stay focused on content but true to speech pattern.

•Find more information on realistic dialogue here!

Don't provide too much info at once:

It should not be obvious to the reader that they're being fed important facts.

•Let the story unfold naturally.

•You don't have to tell the reader everything up front, and you can trust him or her to details from earlier in the story.

• that people who know each other leave a lot unsaid.

•Use exposition, instead, to get important facts across.

•Find more information on how to write dialogue like Hemingway here!

Break up dialogue with action:

Remind your reader that your characters are physical human beings by grounding their dialogue in the physical world.

•Physical details also help break up the words on the page: long periods of dialogue are easier for the reader's eye when broken up by description (and vice versa, for that matter).

•Find more information on adding description here!

Don't overdo dialogue tags:

•Veering too much beyond "he said/she said" only draws attention to the tags — and you want the reader's attention centered on your brilliant dialogue, not your ability to think of synonyms for "said."

•There's a great list of other words to use instead of "said" here!

Stereotypes, profanity, and slang:

Be aware of falling back on stereotypes, and use profanity and slang sparingly.

•All of these risk distracting or alienating your reader.

•Anything that takes the reader out of the fictional world you're working so hard to create is not your friend.

•Read some examples of how to achieve the tone you want without stereotypes, profanity, and slang.

Read widely:

Pay attention to why things work or don't work.

•Where are you taken out of the story's action?

•Where did you stop believing in a character?

•Or when did the character really jump off the page, and how did dialogue help accomplish that?

•Start reading like a writer here, or pick up an anthology and start your own list of writers to learn from.

•Find information on what to learn from writers who came before us here!

Punctuate dialogue correctly:

The rules for punctuating dialogue can be confusing: many writers need help getting them right in the beginning.

•Take some time to learn the basics.

•A reader should get lost in your prose — not feel lost trying to follow your dialogue.

•Find more information on how to punctuate dialogue in writing here!

Now that we've talked about dialogue, let's move on to paragraphs!

A paragraph is a collection of related sentences dealing with a single topic. Learning to write good paragraphs will help you as a writer stay on track during your drafting and revision stages. Good paragraphing also greatly assists your readers in following a piece of writing. You can have fantastic ideas, but if those ideas aren't presented in an organized fashion, you will lose your readers (and fail to achieve your goals in writing).

The Basic Rule: Keep one idea to one paragraph:

The basic rule of thumb with paragraphing is to keep one idea to one paragraph.

•If you begin to transition into a new idea, it belongs in a new paragraph.

•There are some simple ways to tell if you are on the same topic or a new one.

•You can have one idea and several bits of ing evidence within a single paragraph.

•You can also have several points in a single paragraph as long as they relate to the overall topic of the paragraph.

•If the single points start to get long, then perhaps elaborating on each of them and placing them in their own paragraphs is the route to go.

Elements of a paragraph:

To be as effective as possible, a paragraph should contain each of the following: Unity, Coherence, A Topic Sentence, and Adequate Development.

•As you will see, all of these traits overlap.

•Using and adapting them to your individual purposes will help you construct effective paragraphs.

Unity:

The entire paragraph should concern itself with a single focus.

•If it begins with one focus or major point of discussion, it should not end with another or wander within different ideas.

Coherence:

Coherence is the trait that makes the paragraph easily understandable to a reader.

•You can help create coherence in your paragraphs by creating logical bridges and verbal bridges.

Logical bridges:

•The same idea of a topic is carried over from sentence to sentence.

•Successive sentences can be constructed in parallel form.

Verbal bridges:

•Key words can be repeated in several sentences.

•Synonymous words can be repeated in several sentences.

•Pronouns can refer to nouns in previous sentences.

•Transition words can be used to link ideas from different sentences.

A topic sentence:

A topic sentence is a sentence that indicates in a general way what idea or thesis the paragraph is going to deal with.

•Although not all paragraphs have clear-cut topic sentences, and despite the fact that topic sentences can occur anywhere in the paragraph (as the first sentence, the last sentence, or somewhere in the middle), an easy way to make sure your reader understands the topic of the paragraph is to put your topic sentence near the beginning of the paragraph (this is a good general rule for less experienced writers, although it is not the only way to do it).

•Regardless of whether you include an explicit topic sentence or not, you should be able to easily summarize what the paragraph is about.

Adequate development:

The topic (which is introduced by the topic sentence) should be discussed fully and adequately.

•Again, this varies from paragraph to paragraph, depending on the author's purpose, but writers should be wary of paragraphs that only have two or three sentences.

•It's a pretty good bet that the paragraph is not fully developed if it is that short.

Some methods to make sure your paragraph is well-developed:

•Use examples and illustrations

•Cite data (facts, statistics, evidence, details, and others)

•Examine testimony (what other people say such as quotes and paraphrases)

•Use an anecdote or story

•Define in the paragraph

•Compare and contrast

•Evaluate causes and reasons

•Examine effects and consequences

•Analyze the topic

•Describe the topic

•Offer a chronology of an event (time segments)

How do I know when to start a new paragraph?

You should start a new paragraph when:

When you begin a new idea or point.

•New ideas should always start in new paragraphs.

•If you have an extended idea that spans multiple paragraphs, each new point within that idea should have its own paragraph.

To contrast information or ideas.

•Separate paragraphs can serve to contrast sides in a debate, different points in an argument, or any other difference.

When your readers need a pause.

•Breaks between paragraphs function as a short "break" for your readers—adding these in will help your writing be more readable.

•You would create a break if the paragraph becomes too long or the material is complex.

When you are ending your introduction or starting your conclusion.

•Your introductory and concluding material should always be in a new paragraph.

•Many introductions and conclusions have multiple paragraphs depending on their content, length, and the writer's purpose.

Transitions and synopsis:

Two very important elements of paragraphing are signposts and transitions.

•Signposts are internal aids to assist readers; they usually consist of several sentences or a paragraph outlining what the article has covered and where the article will be going.

•Transitions are usually one or several sentences that "transition" from one idea to the next.

•Transitions can be used at the end of most paragraphs to help the paragraphs flow one into the next.

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If you've made it this far, then I applaud you :clap:

I know it's a lot of information to take in all at once, and you don't necessarily have to listen to this either (though I suggest you do), but your readers will thank you and you'll thank yourself for being the very best you can be.

I hoped you learned something from this and continue to strive to be the amazing writers I know you guys are.

Let me know what other tips you'd like to see me do in the comments below! And please, don't hesitate to ask me any questions!

'Till next time! :wave:

Sources:

Top Tips for Writing Dialogue

Paragraphs and Paragraphing

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